Tier 1 Entrepreneur extension and Settlement/ILR

• The Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa is no longer open for new applicants. It has been replaced by the Start up visa and Innovator visa.
• Those who already hold the Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa can remain in the UK and apply to extend their visa and subsequently apply for Settlement/ILR. There are set deadlines by when the extension and settlement applications must be submitted.
• There are specific requirements to be met by the applicants for the extension and Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) applications. The visa holders have rights and obligations under the Entrepreneur visa regime.

Deadline for extension and Settlement/ILR applications

• Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) migrants can submit applications to extend their visa before 6 April 2023. If an application is received after this date, the Home Office must check to see if the applicant’s last grant of leave was granted after a successful challenge by way of Administrative Review, Appeal or Judicial Review.
• Applicants who previously held leave as a Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur) at any time before switching into Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) can submit applications to extend their stay before 6 July 2025.
• Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) migrants who have never held leave as a Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur) can submit applications to Settle before 6 April 2025. If an application is received after this date, the Home Office must check to see if the migrant’s last grant of leave was granted after a successful challenge by way of Administrative Review, Appeal or Judicial Review.
• Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) migrants who have held leave as a Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur) before switching into Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) can submit applications before 6 July 2027.

Call us about entrepreneur visa matters on your mobile or dial +4402034889710.

How to extend the Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa

• To extend the Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa applicants need to demonstrate that during their initial visa validity they have taken all the steps required by the immigration rules and provide the specified evidence listed in the immigration rules and guidance to evidence this.

• You have to apply for the visa extension before your current visa expires. You would need to include all your dependants in the application.

The key requirements for the Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa extension are that the visa holders:

• registered as a self employed or registered as a Director of a limited company or as a Member in a Partnership within 6 months of the visa grant or arrival in the UK (if you can provide the specified evidence to confirm the arrival date)

• have invested or has caused investment to be made by one or more third parties, totalling at least £200,000 (or £50,000 if they were awarded points for £50,000 funding or investment in their last grant of leave) in cash directly into one or more UK businesses. The three forms of investment are listed further below.

Note: To be accepted by the Home Office for the Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa, the investment of funds must meet specific requirements stated in the immigration rules (the requirements must be met both formally and evidentially). If investment funds are from Third Parties there is an additional specified evidence required. There are two categories of Third Parties: 1st category are Seed Funding competitions, Venture Capital firms, Government Departments (£50,000 minimum investment funds required) AND 2nd category are other Third Parties (£200,000 minimum investment funds required). Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) would need to invest either the minimum £50,000 or £200,000, depending on which option they relied when granted the initial Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa.

The three forms of investment are listed below:

1. Direct cash investment in your own name:
   • In order to ensure that the money is used by the business, you should provide the accounts of that business and account’s compilation report for assessment. These accounts must show the investment in money made directly by you, in your own name. The compilation report must be from a suitably qualified accountant who is regulated by one of the accounting regulatory bodies.

2. Director’s loan:
   • This only applies to migrants who become directors of a company. A director’s loan to the company will be considered for the award of points as long as it is unsecured and subordinated in favour of third-party creditors. (For the purposes of this guidance an unsecured loan is where you have loaned money to the business that is not secured by property or assets that become subject to seizure on default. Third-party creditors are those individuals or companies that the business owes money to, not including you.)
   • In addition to the Director’s loan agreement, you will also need to provide business bank statements clearly showing transfer of funds from you to the business.
   • You will also need to provide the accountants and account’s compilation report for your UK business showing the investment you made by Director’s loan.
3. Share capital:
   • You must provide business accounts showing: the shareholders in the business, the amount and value of the shares (on the date of purchase) owned by you (in your name as it appears on your application) must be shown. If the value of your share capital is not shown in the accounts, then a copy of the company’s register of members from Companies House must be provided.
   • You will also need to provide the account’s compilation report from a suitably qualified accountant registered with a regulatory body.

• create two new full time jobs for Settled workers and provide specified evidence required by Home Office. Each job must have lasted for at least 12 months. The key evidence for the job creation:
  • Evidence of immigration status and nationality for the employees
  • Payslips
  • Real Time Full Payment Submissions
  • Job title, job description, hours worked, hourly rate, any changes to the hours worked and change of hourly rate etc.
  • If you jointed an already existing business, you would need to provide a letter from a suitably qualified accountant and evidence to show that there was a net increase of 2 jobs since you joined the business.

• provide the following documents and information showing your role within the business and your active involvement in running it:
  • description of the business activities including the services or goods it provides to its clients or customers
  • description how you have been implementing your business plan
  • your job descriptions, including your job description showing your role within the business
  • description of your day to day activities in the business

• provide evidence that the business you established, joined or taken over is a UK business:
  • evidence of UK business bank account
  • evidence that the business has UK registered address
  • evidence that the business is subject to UK corporate tax

• continue as a self-employed, Director, or a Member of UK active business within 3 months of the extension application is submitted

• meet the maintenance requirement (£945 minimum balance on your personal current or savings account held for at least 90 consecutive days before your application is submitted)

• meet the English language requirement (if you met the requirement for your initial application you can normally rely on the evidence used for this previous application).

• provide ‘Genuine Entrepreneur’ evidence to show that you genuinely established, joined or taken over a UK business and you intend to continue the business (evidence such as invoices, business contracts, professional registrations, insurance certificates etc.).

Call us about entrepreneur visa matters on your mobile or dial +4402034889710.

How much does it cost to extend Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa.

• Application fee 1277 GBP
• Biometrics fee 19,20 GBP
• NHS Health Surcharge £624 per each year of visa for adult applicant, so 2 x £624 for the Entrepreneur extension. For children under 18 the NHS fee is £470 per each year of visa.

How long it takes to get the Home Office decision

• Standard processing time for Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa extension is 8 weeks.
• Standard processing time for Settlement/ILR applications is up to 6 months.
• Point to note: You must not travel out of the UK when your application is in process by the Home Office.

How to apply for the Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) Settlement/ILR

HOW LONG APPLICANT HAS TO RESIDE IN THE UK?

• Standard ILR: The applicant has spent a continuous period of 5 years lawfully in the UK with leave as a Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) Migrant, or

• Accelerated ILR: The applicant has spent a continuous period of 3 years lawfully in the UK as a Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) Migrant, and has:

(i) created the equivalent of at least 10 (including the jobs already relied upon to score points under row 3) new full time jobs which meet the requirements in row 3 above, or

(ii) established a new UK business or businesses that has or have had a gross income from business activity of at least £5 million during the 3 year continuous period, or

(iii) taken over or invested in an existing UK business or businesses and the applicant’s services or investment have resulted in a net increase in gross income from business activity of £5 million during the 3 year continuous period, when compared to the 3 year period immediately before the date the applicant became involved with the business.

HOW MANY JOBS APPLICANT HAS TO CREATE?

The Applicant:

(a) established a new business or businesses that has or have created the equivalent of at least 2 new full time jobs for settled workers, or

(b) taken over or invested in an existing business or businesses and their services or investment have resulted in a net increase in the employment provided by the business or businesses for settled workers by creating the equivalent of at least 2 new full time jobs for settled workers.

NOTE1: The jobs must have existed for at least 12 months during the applicant’s most recent grant of leave or, where that leave was granted less than 12 months ago, for at least the 12 months immediately before the date of application.

NOTE2: The job creation evidence is as described above for the Extension application.

In respect of an applicant who was granted a COVID-19 related extension of leave, the applicant must have:
(i) created two jobs meeting the criteria in (a) or (b) for at least the 12-month period referred to above; and
(ii) created at least a further two jobs meeting the criteria in (a) or (b) that have been in existence for at least 12 months by the date of application (these jobs can be the same as (i) providing they meet the requirement of existing for at least a further 12 months).

The Applicant established UK business

The Applicant:

(a) registered with HM Revenue & Customs as self-employed, or

(b) registered with Companies House as a director of a UK company or member of a UK partnership.

The above requirement must have been met:

(i) within 6 months of entering the UK (if they were most recently granted entry clearance and there is evidence to establish their date of entry) or, in any other case, within 6 months from the date the most recent leave was granted, and

(ii) within the three months before the date of application.

NOTE: The applicant does not need to provide evidence of (i) if they were last granted entry clearance or leave to remain as a Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) Migrant, if they were granted points under the ‘Extension’ application (it normally applies when the business already existed at the time of the initial Tier 1 application OR if the Tier 1 applicant previously was granted Extension of Tier 1 Entrepreneur visa).

Applicant invested the required funds

The applicant has invested or has caused investment to be made by one or more third parties, totalling at least £200,000 (or £50,000 if they were awarded points for £50,000 funding or investment in their last grant of leave) in cash directly into one or more UK businesses.

NOTE: The applicant does not need to provide evidence of this investment if they were last granted entry clearance or leave to remain as a Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) Migrant, having been awarded points under the ‘Extension’ application (it normally applies when the business already existed at the time of the initial Tier 1 application OR if the Tier 1 applicant previously was granted Extension of Tier 1 Entrepreneur visa).

Applicant meets the genuine entrepreneur test

The Applicant must meet the ‘Genuine Entrepreneur’ test and provide evidence to show that you have genuinely established, joined or taken over a UK business and intends to continue the business (financial accounts, evidence such as invoices, business contracts, professional registrations, insurance certificates etc.).

Applicant must also provide evidence of business activities:

Provide the following documents and information showing the Tier 1 Entrepreneur applicant’s role within the business and his/her active involvement in running it:

• description of the business activities, including the services or goods that your business provides to its clients or customers;
• description how you have been implementing your business plan;
• your job description showing your role in the business;
• description of your day to day activities in the business;
• your employees job descriptions showing their role within the business.

Applicant and adult dependants meet the KOLL requirements

Life in the UK Test can be booked on gov.uk website: Life in the UK Test – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

The English language requirement by the Main Applicant (Tier 1 Entrepreneur) is likely to have been met in the initial application and extension application, and normally can rely on this to meet the requirement for the ILR application.

Adult dependants (spouse and children who are 18 or over) will need to meet the English language requirement at the time of their ILR application is submitted. There are a number of ways the requirement can be met:

• Nationals of majority English speaking countries meet the requirement automatically when they provide a copy of their passport with the application English language requirements (publishing.service.gov.uk)
• Has a university degree that was taught in English and obtains confirmation from the relevant UK authority that the degree is equivalent to a UK BA, Masters or PHD degree and it was taught in English to the minimum B1 level English language requirements (publishing.service.gov.uk)
• Passed a Home Office approved secure English language test Prove your English language abilities with a secure English language test (SELT) – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

What are the costs of Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) ILR application

• Application fee £2,389 GBP per applicant
• Biometrics fee £19,20 GBP per applicant

NOTE: The application fee and biometrics fee is the same for the Main Applicant (Tier 1 Entrepreneur) and for each dependant applicant.

What is the processing time of the Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) ILR application

The standard processing time is up to 6 months. There is no expedited processing available for the Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) ILR applications. Once the ILR is granted, within approximately 10 working days you should receive your new Biometric Residence Permit (BRP).

The Applicant and dependants must remain in the UK until the applications are decided. Travel outside of the UK when the applications are in process by the Home Office, is considered as withdrawal of the applications.

How we can help

Our service includes the following:

• Assessment of your individual circumstances to understand your case to then provide the correct advice and assistance;
• Clear and detailed advice on the requirements for your application;
• Detailed advice and templates of the relevant documents required for your application;
• Detailed review of the supporting documents to ensure they meet the Home Office criteria;
• Completion of your online application form, booking your biometric appointment and uploading the supporting documents to the relevant website;
• Drafting of a covering letter for your application, explaining in a simple and clear way how you meet the requirements for the application.